Osteoporosis

 Osteoporosis is a condition that lots of us recognise, but do we really know what it is?  

It is a condition where your bones lose strength, this would not be noticed until you had a slip or a fall, you may not even know you have it.  However because the bones have lost some of their strength a simple accident could end up causing a bone fracture (break).  This condition impacts both females and  males. 

How do the bones lose strength? 

Your bone are just as alive and changing as your skin.  It is normal for us to shed some old skin as we grow new skin.  In our bones, old bone is absorbed by cells called osteoclasts and then new bone is built by cells called osteoblasts.  This process is know as bone remodeling and keeps our skeleton healthy.  As we travel through phases of our life the hormones that balance this cycle change.  As we get older some aspects of our bodies don't keep working as efficiently as they used to.  Take the osteoclasts for example, who have worked at top speed through our childhood, growing new bone and replacing the old.  Without care they might not work as efficiently as they used to, reducing our bone density. 

What can we do?

Maintaining a health life style and balanced diet can help to maintain bone strength.  You can find lots of useful information in the NHS eat well guide.  

We can also use exercise to maintain our bone strength.  Weight bearing exercises that we complete almost every week in our Pilates class do a great job at keeping the bones strong. In addition, having strong muscles attached to our bones will also make our bones work harder.  So enjoy and embrace standing on one leg, holding a plank, rolling like a ball, moving through your spine and building your core strength.  All your hard work and muscle development is keeping your bones strong. 

This post was written with information from The Royal Osteoporosis Society please visit their website for lots of really great additional information. 

If you are unsure how much exercise you should do, have a look at the NHS exercise guide.